Should Turkey be allowed to join the EU?

[laurentius]

Originally posted by VetLegion
Laurentius, is that Israeli Defence Force? And you a Finn? This forum never ceases to amaze me

Didnt see it coming did you? the notorious Israel-basher wanting to join the IDF. Well as they say know thy enemy....
No really I want to do something with my life instead of rotting in front of this tft and serving my time as a sivilserviceman

[Pekka]

laurentius, ah ok Well I have to admit I was wondering what's up now and why?!

[Chemical Ollie]

Originally posted by VetLegion


"1453, what kind of year was it?"

For a Muslim, that year would be in the future. They start counting from Muhammed.

[The Pioneer]

Nope, not part of Europe.

Greenland, the ABC and some other Carribean islands should join first.

[laurentius]

Hey, Is French Guyana part of EU? I think it is..

[The Pioneer]

AFAIK, none of the off the European continent protectorates/islands/etc are in the EU.

So long...

[Dauphin]

They are part of the EU, they even use the Euro.

[St Leo]

Now why do I keep hearing problems with the integration of Muslims in Europe?

1900: Them Irish are ruining New York City. They'll never be normal like us. They dress weird, talk weird, smell weird, and swear weird.

[TheStinger]

Originally posted by axi


Cromwell had to chop the King's head off once and lead a bloody civil war, so that the UK would eventually become one parliamentary monarchy. Still the UK is fathoms less democratic than, say, France which got rid of monarchy alltogether.

I couldn't let this pass, how is France more democratic than the UK. You've just made that up.

[axi]

The UK still has a Queen. France does not.
The UK still has nobility and a house of Lords. France does not.
The UK has a majoritarian election system with single-seat constituencies. France has a proportional election system.
The UK has all political power effectively concentrated in 2 parties. France has a multiparty system where coalitions are possible.

[TheStinger]

The UK has a nobility of which 92 members can vote in a revising chamber of parliament. That vote is to be removed.
Proportional rep is not initself more democratic.
Power in 2 parties does not make it less democtaic if those parties are themselves broadly based which they are.
The Queen has no power. The prime minister assumes them, although this does not make him any more powerful than the French President.

My point is that France is broadly as deomcratic as the UK although with a different system.

[Dauphin]

Also, there is a big difference between form and substance.

[VetLegion]

True about nobility, that is undemocratic. The whole idea of nobility is obsolete.

Anyway, about Turkey, I remember quite some time ago seeing a cover of The Economist with a title "Will Turkey become EU member?" (or along those lines). If any of you read the magazine or have a subscription can you tell us what they concluded? Economist is quite level headed and I am curious about their opinion.